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Shakespeare - HELP!

Superfly

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Ok so I just got a few classes for Spring quarter, and one is a “Studies in Shakespeare” class.

My professor is requesting the class get the “Folger Shakespeare Library editions” of a handful of plays.

He said, “I want to clarify that these are the editions I strongly recommend—they are cheap (like $5–$10), easy to find both new and used, and laid out in way that makes reading Shakespeare about as easy as possible, in my opinion. But you are welcome to use other editions of these plays (including from a complete edition of Shakespeare) if you already own them or find a better deal.”


What is the difference between the Folger editions and the regular editions? Has anyone read them and can determine that they do make it easier to understand them?

Because I’m at the point that I feel like I need a “Shakespeare for Dummies” book to help me understand how to read the plays before I actually start to read the plays.
 
Not familiar with Folger's, but I swear by the "No Fear Shakespeare" series. They present the play on the left side as originally written, and on the right in modern English so you can compare line for line. Cheap on Amazon and you can often find them in used bookstores even cheaper.

I wish they had been around when I was an undergrad but I read them now for sheer enjoyment.
 

Thanks! Are they pretty spot-on as far as the interpretation?
 
Folger is the largest Shakespeare library in the US. Their editions are considered the best researched and contain lots of interpretive notes explaining the meaning of a lot of the language. Highly recommended.
 
Fast way to "get" Shakespeare.

Shakespeare wrote in Early Modern English, not Old or Middle English.

He plays are classified as comedies, tragedies and histories.

His plays are full of ribald jokes, lots of violence, and the insults in them are legendary.

When he was 18 he knocked up an older woman, Anne Hathaway (26), married her and they had a daughter.

When reading Shakespeare be aware of which character is speaking, who the character is speaking to, and who else can hear. And remember they are plays, meant to be spoken out loud.

Relax, Shakespeare wrote for the masses. He wanted his plays to be popular and make money. While his language can be intimidating to today's readers, it's also gorgeous and memorable.

Try to view the class as a treat, not a chore.
 
NWRatCon said:
Folger is the largest Shakespeare library in the US. Their editions are considered the best researched and contain lots of interpretive notes explaining the meaning of a lot of the language. Highly recommended.
Click to expand...

Ok will keep that in mind. I’ve been looking around for them and they do seem rather inexpensive.

Thank you!
 

I’m nervous, but cautiously optimistic. I’ve always wanted to learn how to read Shakespeare, and needed an extra class and this one was available. I figured there was no time like the present.

I’m looking forward to it, actually, if I can grasp it.

Thanks!
 
i agree
 
People psych themselves out of enjoying Shakespeare. The Bard did not write for the intellectual elite—he wanted everyone to see his plays. I have a copy of his works with footnotes that give the meaning of the arcane words. That's all you really need.

If you keep telling yourself it's going to be difficult, it will be.
 

The first thing is to differentiate between the tragedies and the comedies. This is easy. The comedies aren't funny and everyone hates them, and the tragedies ARE funny and every named character dies, usually from either murder or terminal angst.

The historicals are in my opinion written by someone else entirely, because the lines are really good.
 
The historicals are what we are focusing on.
 
That's a good point as reading a script is different than reading a novel. You may find it helpful to find one of the plays on YouTube or one of the streaming services and read along with the actors until you can put the pieces together to visualize it in your own mind instead of in someone else's interpretation. Take one of the characters and rehearse the part as though you were performing on stage as that's another good way to get into the play.
 
I think they have scholarly apparatus that's easily accessible for general education. Also, they're usually paperback, in separate volumes, and cheaper. In contrast to that and for undergrads, there are volumes like Norton Shakespeare.

Shakespeare is meant to be seen and not read. You can probably try the ff. but it takes more time:

Read the synopsis of the play first, e.g., Hamlet.

Watch a performance or at least a movie version, like Hamlet featuring Olivier (with subtitles turned on). Following the synopsis, you'll slowly understand what's going on in each scene.

Then read the play, marking passages and scenes that you think are memorable. They'll very likely be discussed in class.
 
Good idea, and thanks!
 
Good idea also. Thank you
 
Ok so I’m balls deep in Richard II, and this is fabulous. It’s really exciting!

I am not struggling with it as badly as I thought I would, and the Folger’s editions all go out of the way to explain the parts that we may not understand. I’m also reading summaries and Cliff’s Notes and analyses and Spark’s Notes to make sure I’m understand what I’m reading, but amazingly enough, I’m understanding everything. The summaries, etc, are just verifying that I read and understood it correctly.

Just finished my first exam for Acts 1-3, and I made a 90.
 
Awesome update!!!
 
Disagree, Philistine.
 
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